“Well.” Judith tried to absorb everything Ava had told her.
The folded piece of paper with the notation about Hukle,
Hukle, & Huff didn’t necessarily indicate that a Killegrew
divorce was in the offing. And while Ava’s account of Frank’s
domestic triangle was interesting, Andrea’s personnel files
might have a more immediate bearing on the week-
end’s events. Had Max been looking for them? How and
when had Nadia slipped away to Andrea’s room?
why it was important. “Ava,” she said as the other woman
started back for the dining room, “how long were you in the
bathroom with Nadia this afternoon?”
“What?” Ava looked at Judith as if she were crazy.
Judith felt embarrassed. “I don’t mean…It sounds stupid,
but…Really, I have a very good reason to ask.”
Ava’s expression grew serious. “Are you talking about the
time period when Ward was killed?”
“More or less, yes.”
“Oh, let me think.” Ava cocked her head to one side. “Five
minutes? I don’t know. However long it takes. I’m not much
for primping.”
“Are you sure it didn’t take longer than five minutes?” Judith persisted.
“Yes.” Ava now seemed more definite. “Ask Nadia. She
was with me. We were chatting between the stalls. I suppose
we each wanted to make sure the other one was okay.”
Judith’s bright idea was dashed. “Before that, you were
with Gene in the library, right?”
Ava was starting to look vexed. “Yes, I was. And no, I
won’t answer any more questions about
Judith gave up. In silence, the two women cleared away
the dirty tablecloth, swept the floor, and finished tidying the
kitchen. As Ava was about to leave, Judith apologized.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be impertinent. I was only
trying to figure out who was where when Ward was
murdered.”
Ava gave Judith a tired smile. “We’re all trying to figure
that out. Frankly, it’s impossible.”
Judith frowned. “Why do you say that?”
Ava began ticking off the names on her fingers. “Margo
and Russell had gone to the basement with you and your
cousin. But after they came back to the lobby, Margo went
to find Frank. Nobody knows where Russell was at that
point, though he claims to have stayed put. But how long
did it take before Margo met up with Frank? What was he
doing while Nadia was heading for the restroom? What was
Nadia doing after she left Frank? And what took Max so
long to figure out that Ward was taking forever to change?
Don’t you see? Only Gene and I can alibi each other.”
